Mark 15

It reads like an award winning novel.  I envision a producer drooling over the movie rights to the story.  Yet, it is not just a story.  It is reality.

I have read Mark’s gospel repeatedly.  There is conflict.  There is drama.  There is compassion. Today I read about murder.  Christ was murdered. Brutally.  Intentionally. 

Many turned their backs on him.  Others turned toward him as they realized who he truly was.  Some watched in horror as their friend, their Savior, their hope died on the cross. 

These words were not new to me, but as I read them they seemed to pack a stronger, more emotional punch:

o   Simon, who carried the cross, was a father.  His two sons’ names were listed in Scripture.

o   Religious leaders and bystanders alike derided, mocked, and reviled him seemingly without a conscious.

o   Darkness weighed heavy for three hours.

o   “Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last.” – This was what changed the heart of the centurion who watched him die – a cry and a breath.

o   Though Joseph of Arimathea was a respected leader, Mark says that he “took courage” in order to get the body of Christ.

o   Pilate “granted the corpse to Joseph.”

There is so much more to the story.  I have not given away the ending which is quite exciting.  Mark 15-16 tells a powerful story that has changed lives for eternity.  Read it and be amazed again.